ALBION boss Chris Hughton is confident his new-look team can hit the ground running in the Championship.

Hughton could have as many six or seven signings in the squad for Nottingham Forest's visit to the Amex on August 7, with the Seagulls still only halfway through their summer recruitment drive.

He admits that is more than ideal but Hughton expects recent foreign captures Tomer Hemed and Gaetan Bong, together with English defender Liam Rosenior, to settle in quickly.

He told The Argus: "That's why it is important the three so far have a lot of experience between them. I think that will help.

"In an ideal situation you don't want to be bringing in so many. An ideal situation, I think, for a club in a summer is to add another three or four players to your squad.

"But lots of clubs have done it and I've had to do it at times. Certainly in my period of time at Norwich we had two quite big summers where we brought in a lot of players.

"It's never ideal, because you are not quite sure how they are going to gel, but you would certainly like to think they will if you bring the right type of players in. The other two, with Liam, speak perfect English which I think helps."

Hughton is taking a squad of 25 to Tignes in the French Alps tomorrow for a six-day training camp and friendly against Swiss third division minnows FC Meyrin in Geneva next Saturday (2pm).

The party includes Glen Rea, who Hughton now regards as a regular member of the first team squad, and three or four under-21s from a shortlist of Ben White, James Tilley, Jesse Starkey and Rob Hunt.

Tilley, 17 last month, became one of Albion's youngest ever players when he was introduced from the bench in the dying moments of the closing game of the season at Middlesbrough in May.

The French trip is a departure from the norm both for Albion, who have prepared in Spain or Portugal in recent seasons, and for Hughton, who is more accustomed to taking sides to Austria.

"It's a nice change for us and I'm sure it will be very good," he said.